Eunny’s Ivy League Vest gave me the perfect excuse to give this New England Shetland wool a try.  I had been wanting to see if there was another alternative to Jamieson’s of Shetland and Jamieson and Smith.  It really bothered me that both yarns would have sections that would thin out.  This yarn doesn’t have that problem at all, it is very texturally consistent.  The colors Eunny chose are very soft matte colors, almost looking faded, and very nice for achieving a vintage appearance from the beginning.  She was very clever in her use of colors, with three lights and neutral brown, you could substitute the two blues for any two colors you like, but I happen to be a very big fan of navy blue and turquise ever since I saw them paired together in an eye shadow set by Christian Dior; the gal behind the makeup counter told me they were signature colors for them…who knew?  I just liked the colors!  (Before I started this obsession with Fair Isle knitting I had a very big obsession with eye shadow colors….as it turns out, its a little more affordable knitting!). I enjoyed every bit of working the corrugated ribbing, went right along my merry way up the sweater for about an inch until I realized, this pattern calls for decreases in pattern, not at the edge, but evenly spaced around the circumference, and, not on a plain color row.  I violated my golden rule to never start a pattern until I had read through all the directions and now I’m stuck!  I do not know how to accomplish this feat unless I revise the pattern and insert plain color rows and make my decreases on those rows (do I dare say that I am about to embark upon improvisational knitting? Me, the lover of all things structured and ordered?  Would Elizabeth Zimmerman be proud?)  While I’m stuck and sitting on the fence about all of this, I am thinking of another vest, from the new Rowan magazine, and this time I read through all the directions and there is no decreases except at the end of the rows.  (Look how pretty it looks on Delana, all finished, and just beautiful!)  This is one of those patterns where you want to hold on to it forever, because:

 a) its classic, traditional, sporty, but also feminine and timeless, b) it doesn’t take alot of yarn so its comparatively affordable as compared to a sweater, c) it takes less time to knit than a sweater without sleeves, d) the Rowan felted tweed performs beautifully in Fair Isle knitting and its relatively soft as compared to the Jamieson yarns and the Harrisville New England Shetland, and e) its something that even us warm weather knitters can wear alot when our winters only get as chilly as the 50’s (F).  In case you want to do your own Google searching to see other photos, the vest is called “Fyne Vest” and the pattern is found in Rowan Magazine #42.  Either way, if you decide to make one of these, keep in mind, Eunny’s vest is knit in the round and the Rowan pattern is based on flat rows, something for everyone in both camps